Sorry about re posting but I'm about ready to try and order some better looking wheels for my car. Problem is I've found the 5X5 bolt pattern with the correct backspacing isn't a popular size. Can I go with a 6 inch wheel without interference issues? What size tire would be best? Wires would be good but I'm not wanting to spend that much and to tackle the rear hubs.
Thanks

 

Jag wheels are not 5 x 5", it's 5 x 4.75". If you mean bolt on wire wheels, as opposed to the Rudge-Whitworth drive (i.e. original style splined hub) I think your only option is Daytons. I don't know if a 6" wheel and tire will fit. Probably not with the rear spats in place, but I'm not a Mark 2 expert.

On the S Type, getting anything wider than a 185 tire to clear the fender skirt is difficult.

 

I actually run a 205/70/15 on my S type with a standard 5J wire wheel. Yes it is tight getting them off the back but they do go on and off and fill the arches well. I made the mistake a couple of years ago when I was looking at replacing my painted wire wheels for chrome when I came across a set of 5 secondhand Jaguar chrome wire wheels on EBay which were sent to me from Estonia. When they arrived I fitted my tyres then offered them up to the car only to find they were off an E type so were 6.5J not 5. Went on the fronts superbly and I got them on the back by deflating the tyre and inflating once they were on. They looked great and did not touch the inner wheel arch but really filled out the back end. Problem was even when I deflated the tyre when they were fitted I could not get them off the car because of the squared off rear arch. In the end I had to disconnect all four shockers on the back axle and let the hubs drop right down before I got enough clearance to get them off. Looked great but not very practicable so they were resold for a profit and I bought the correct 5J chromes new from MWS.

 

I'm glad someone lined me out to the bolt pattern. I won't have any problems with the rear spats as I have chopped mine down. I was interested in the offset and rubbing on the inside.

 

I am running 195 65 R15 tyres (tires) on steel wheels on my MK2.
The reason is that for some reason 185 70 R15 tyres are difficult to get in Australia and dammed expensive. 195 65 R15 tyres are everywhere and competitively priced.
The differences are pretty small.
The 195 wheel does 808 turns per mile whereas the 185 does 801 per mile ie less than 1% difference so won't really affect the speedometer
The 195 tyre is 1/5 of an inch (about 5mm) wider so no problems with spats.
Early GMH wheels had the same bolt pattern as Jaguar and their bolt on wires fitted OK.
Cheers

 

I have found that you have to look at the actual measurement of tires, rather than relying on the designation. I was looking for 205 tires and the actual width could vary by up to 10mm between brands that were all supposed to be the same size.

 

The size of the tyre wall height is determined by the tyre size markings. So my tyres size 205/70/15 means the height is 70% of the 205 width so 143.5.

The original 185R15 tyre for the Mk2/S Type although not marked as such was I believe an 80. So basically a 185/80/15. The height of the tyre would then have been 80% of 185 = 148.

The 4.5cm difference above is aesthetically acceptable and the tyres do fit the arc of the wheel arch but you have to be careful when looking for the right size tyre when changing the width. My S Type when I bought it had a set of 195/65/15 tyres on which gives a side wall size of 126.75 and they looked awful. The tyres looked like Mini tyres on a Jaguar but I think the old boy who owned the car before me was just looking for a cheap tyre you could buy anywhere to fit rather than pay a lot of money for the rare but original sized 185R15. Changing the height of the sidewall will also change the circumference and therefor alter the reading of your Speedo.

You can play with these numbers to try and get closer to the 148 original.
205/75/15 means a 153.75 side wall.
195/70/15 means a 136.5 side wall. These are van tyres and possibly not the correct speed rating.
195/75/15 means a 146.25 side wall which is pretty close but they are classic tyres again and very expensive.

You also have to get the correct speed rating for the tyre so our Jaguars need at least a U or above rating even though there are very few of us who would not get anywhere near 124 MPH but our cars are capable of doing 120 MPH.
MPH KPH
R 106 170
S 112 180
T 118 190
U 124 200
H 130 210
V 149 240

 

Look on the Tire Rack website. They give exact dimensions of tires by size & brand & try to test them all.

 

@oxendine - this is your car right? What kind of wheels are you thinking about? IMO it would be hard to beat the look of those wheels.

 

Yes that's mine. Looks like old man wheels. I'm only 70.

 

I have to say I am a lover of wire wheels on a classic Jaguar. My 1968 S type originally had steel wheels and I converted it to wires about four years ago. I thought it went from a dowdy old mans car to a sporty saloon with the change but that is just my opinion and I am 64 and 3/4.

 

Have you called VTO? They were really helpful on a project I worked on a few years back. They have a good selection of wheels that don't look like old man wheels

I'm curious to see what you end up with.

 

The only problem with wire wheels is they are a devil to clean.

Any of the Jaguar XJ6/8/12/S alloy wheels up to 2003 will fit your hubs, but I don't know if they have the right offset or are too big. Usually the narrowest was 6" and went up to around 8" wide. The S Type and X Type wheels won't fit, they are a metric bolt pattern.

The bolt pattern is the same as Chevy, but the hub diameter is bigger, so any GM wheels would need to be machined to fit. It's a hub-cebntric fit, so that needs to be fairly precise.

 

Chrome or stainless are easy to clean if you have a pressure washer. Yes fiddly to do painted wires with a brush but I have stainless wires on mine and they are a doddle. Any ingrained dirt from brake dust on the fronts comes off with a light dusting of bicarbonate of soda followed by the pressure washer and they are clean again.

 

You might want to contact British Wire Wheels. You can find them online. They can set you up with a bolt-on wire wheel conversion that looks original. It's gonna cost some $$$. I'd do it myself if funds ever permitted !
Schmitty

 

I do have a pressure washer, but I still found it difficult to get the backside of the rim truly clean, especially to concours levels. To get it really clean I still need to take the wheels off.

 

i'm not a fan of wire wheels for a number of reasons....now, i used to be, back when i bought my first car, a 1961 MGA. back then i wouldn't have had any other kind of wheel. but these days i'm partial to steelies. and have them on both of my vintage british cars. i'm not a nut about it though...

but i WILL say that they have one great advantage over any other wheel i've ever owned, and that's that they're awfully fast and easy to mount and dismount. and for those that are constantly fussing with wheels and tires and for those that have cars where step one when doing any kind of maintenance other than engine work, removing a wheel or two is necessary, well...they are a godsend, IMO.

 

Huey, Good to hear of another non-conformist! There are always centre lock Dunlop Racing Wheels. They are what I'd buy ... after a big lottery win ☺️

 

Dunlop centre lock Racing Wheels.





Nigel's car from the Register.

 

ya... i'm a fan of the dunlops. i'd take 'em. adds a aire of menace.